The Court of Arbitration for Sport is to hold a hearing into Manchester City's signing of youngster Benjamin Garre.
It was revealed last month that the Citizens had allegedly snapped up the teenager from Velez Sarsfield by illegal means, as they breached FIFA's rules over the signing of minors from outside the European Union.
A hearing is to take place on Monday following a complaint by Velez to CAS, but PA reports that it could take weeks before an outcome is reached.
City will argue that the then-16-year-old held an Italian passport when signed in July 2016, keeping them inside the boundaries, but if found guilty they could be handed a transfer ban.
Barcelona, Real Madrid and Atletico Madrid have all fallen short of FIFA's transfer rules in the past few years, each relating to the signing of international players aged under 18.